One of the primary uses for the apparatus of this invention is in combination with sugar cane harvesting machinery, more specifically, the piling of sugar cane in windrows. The apparatus is, however, equally adaptable to any stalk harvesting equipment, i.e. corn, and its use with sugar cane harvesting equipment is merely the preferred embodiment.
Sugar cane is primarily a tropical crop requiring at least 60 inches of rain per year or the equivalent in irrigation. Although the crop is grown in many tropical and sub-tropical areas, the main users of mechanized crop harvesters are plantation owners and sugar cane farmers in Hawaii, Louisiana, Florida and Australia.
Sugar cane is generally harvested by cutting the stalks at the surface of the ground, and at the topmost mature internode. After cutting the sugar cane, the stalks are often piled into windrows where they are later loaded into wagons or conveyors for transport to a processing plant. On most sugar cane farms the cane is loaded onto transport vehicles by mechanical loaders. The use of such loaders in sugar cane fields must be controlled so that the fields and crops are not destroyed by tires or by the weight of the mechanical loaders.
One of the problems encountered in the mechanized harvesting of sugar cane concerns the piling of the cane into windrows. Plantation owners are concerned with the economy and efficiency of harvesting their crops. If more than one row of cane can be piled into a single windrow, the loaders, trucks, and wagons will be able to travel a substantially shorter distance. In addition, the clear rows will allow maneuvering room for the loading and transporting machinery. Both aspects reduce the amount of time in the field, thus aiding the efficiency of the plantation owner's operation.
The piling of more than one row of cane into a single windrow presents significant advantages to harvesters of sugar cane. By stacking the cane, a denser mat is formed and a larger "bite" can be obtained by mechanical loaders thus aiding in their overall efficiency. This technique also helps in obtaining a cleaner sample of the cane. Furthermore, where the cane is burned after cutting to remove extraneous branches and leafy material there is a better burn with larger piles. Thus it can be seen that the piling of a plurality of cut sugar cane into a single windrow for loading provides a series of advantages to the sugar cane farmer and processor.
In response to the need for the specialized piling of sugar cane into windrows, several different piling arm assemblies have been produced for use with motorized cane harvesters, and more specifically different types of discharge ends have been employed on piler arms to direct the fall of sugar cane into windrows.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,427,313 to Thomson discloses an assembly which piles the cane crosswise to the rows by lifting the cane into a vertical position before discharging it from the piler arm.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,669,829 to Pugh discloses adjustable deflectors and guide blades used to direct the fall of cane from the piler arm assembly. U.S. Pat. No. 3,095,679 also to Pugh embodies a similar deflector bar means for directing the fall of cane.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,448,564 to Chauffe discloses an extension bar on the end of the piler arm which turns about the center of rotation of a sprocket so that the overall length of the piler mechanism may be shortened.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,121 to V. P. Broussard discloses a piling arm with a flexible free end which can be controlled to pile can normal to any piling row for any angle of the piling arm.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,165,596 to Duncan discloses a pair of articulated pilers with free ends which may be pivoted. U.S. Pat. No. 4,232,775 also to Duncan discloses single articulation pilers with adjustable cane-butt deflectors and rub bars for directing the fall of cane. U.S. Pat. No. 4,380,281 also to Duncan discloses rub bar arms mounted on the free ends of pilers along with chain wipers, each individually pivoted to direct the fall of cut cane.
The improved automated piler assembly of this invention dispenses with the inefficient system of gates and bars and the complicated system for manipulating them as shown in the prior art and replaces them with a single articulated unit which is preferably hydraulically actuated.
It is important in the piling operation to maintain a confined, guided control over the cut sugar cane. The improved automated piler arm assembly of this invention permits such control while the cane is being directed, thus aiding in the elimination of clogged discharge ends.
Yet another advantage of the improved piler assembly of this invention is the use of a separate sticker chain on the discharge end of the piler arm, thus eliminating chains and sprocket components on piler arms with ends which flex or pivot.